The Associated Press, in its continued obsession with the religious affiliations of Supreme Court justices and nominees--as long as they are Catholic--released its first story of the day concerning the rumored pick of Samuel Alito for the high court: Alito Would Be Fifth Catholic on Court.

The brief story notes, “If confirmed, Samuel Alito would be the fifth Roman Catholic on the current Supreme Court and the 11th Catholic to serve in the court's history.” It then goes on to list the names of those eleven.

The piece ends with this cryptic item: “Note: (Clarence) Thomas converted to Catholicism after joining the court.”

Note to the AP: As even a cursory research would have revealed, Clarence Thomas was raised a Catholic and attended Catholic schools most of his life. He even considered the priesthood, attending Saint John Vianney minor seminary for three years before graduating cum laude from the College of Holy Cross. He left the church for twenty-eight years after college but returned in 1996.